China has the most number of nuclear power plants in the world under construction, according to an industry report released by China Nuclear Energy Association (NEA) on Wednesday.

"China is building 17 new nuclear power plants as of the end of 2020," said Zhang Tingke, head of the association. "And the estimated capacity is 18.53 million kilowatts."

During China's 13th Five-Year Plan period from 2016 to 2020, the country built 20 new nuclear power generators with a total capacity of 23.44 million kilowatts, the report said.

Domestic technology is playing a bigger role in the industry landscape, with the Hualong-1 model entering mass manufacturing and Guohe-1 model starting construction, said the report.

"Our country has fully managed the core technology of nuclear power generation," Zhang told China Media Group (CMG). "As much as 88 percent of China's third-generation nuclear power technology are domestically developed."

Electricity generated with nuclear technology increased 5.02 percent in 2020 compared to 2019. And 4.94 percent of the total electricity generated in 2020 is from nuclear plants, the report said.

By the end of last December, the Chinese mainland had a total of 48 commercial nuclear power generating units, with a total of installed capacity of 49.88 million kilowatts, ranking third in the world after the U.S. and France. Also, 28 generating units have reached full marks in the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) composite index, accounting for one-third of the total full marked nuclear power generating units globally.